Leaching behavior of Pb and Zn in air pollution control residues and their modeling prediction

Increasing attention has been paid to air pollution control （APC） residues in China recently due to the rising proportion of waste incineration and the hazardous characteristics of the residues, among which heavy metal leaching toxicity plays an important role. Leaching behavior and potential risk of Pb and Zn in the APC residues from a Shanghai municipal solid waste （MSW） incinerator was studied, based on the leaching tests under different conditions and theoretical calculation using a geochemical thermodynamic equilibrium model MINTEQA2. Results showed that, extractant species and liquid to solid （L/S） ratio predominantly controlled the leaching toxicity of Pb and Zn, while ionic strength, vibration method and leaching time had less effect on the metals release. Leachate/final pH determined the metal leaching behavior, which changed the speciation of heavy metals in the extraction system. The equilibrium aqueous speciation, precipitation-dissolution of Pb and Zn was investigated according to the model computation, which was well in agreement with the experimental results.

Estimating emissions from crop residue open burning in China based on statistics and MODIS fire products

With the objective of reducing the large uncertainties in the estimations of emissions from crop residue open burning, an improved method for establishing emission inventories of crop residue open burning at a high spatial resolution of 0.25°× 0.25° and a temporal resolution of1 month was established based on the moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer（MODIS） Thermal Anomalies/Fire Daily Level3 Global Product（MOD/MYD14A1）. Agriculture mechanization ratios and regional crop-specific grain-to-straw ratios were introduced to improve the accuracy of related activity data. Locally observed emission factors were used to calculate the primary pollutant emissions. MODIS satellite data were modified by combining them with county-level agricultural statistical data, which reduced the influence of missing fire counts caused by their small size and cloud cover. The annual emissions of CO2, CO, CH4,nonmethane volatile organic compounds（NMVOCs）, N2O, NOx, NH3, SO2, fine particles（PM2.5）,organic carbon（OC）, and black carbon（BC） were 150.40, 6.70, 0.51, 0.88, 0.01, 0.13, 0.07, 0.43,1.09, 0.34, and 0.06 Tg, respectively, in 2012. Crop residue open burning emissions displayed typical seasonal and spatial variation. The highest emission regions were the Yellow-Huai River and Yangtse-Huai River areas, and the monthly emissions were highest in June（37%）.Uncertainties in the emission estimates, measured as 95% confidence intervals, range from a low of within ±126% for N2O to a high of within ± 169% for NH3.

CFD-based analysis of urban haze-fog dispersion—A preliminary study

This paper proposes a computational fluid dynamics(CFD)model,along with dimensionless quantitative assessment standard—air pollution residual time(APRT)for the evaluation of local haze-fog(HF)dispersion in a built environment.A low APRT value ensures good ventilation.A building group model that comprises high-rise business building,mid-rise office buildings,low-mid-rise residential buildings(at the center of the building group),a mid-rise recreational center,and a local road(open terrain),was scaled down(1:100)to simulate the HF dispersion process.The orientation of the building group was numerically modified to generate a wind incidence normal to the high-rise building,mid-rise buildings,recreational center,and road.The results showed that the orientation of the building group largely determines the APRT.The most favorable orientation can reduce APRT by more than 50%.Our results strongly suggested that in order to reduce the consequential negative effect of air pollution,future urban designs should undergo a comprehensive ventilation assessment to ensure a low APRT value.